How to Tackle the Most Important Issue...

How to Tackle the Most Important Issue Right Now

What’s the most important or difficult issue that I need to solve right now?

You should always know the answer to that question and have the courage to work on fixing it. Don’t be afraid to confront it. Don’t be afraid to tackle it. After all, what have you got to lose?

We suppose you could answer that question by saying, “Well gee, I could get fired, or people might think I’m being a pain in the neck.” Of course, any number of painful things could happen. But is the fear of a bit of pain today enough to stop you from trying to make things better for yourself and your team for the long term?

Pointing out and tackling tough problems doesn’t mean you have to be critical, especially if you take a respectful approach. It shows you’re dedicated to busting through barriers and getting the job done right in a positive and professional way.

Really, it’s our personal and professional responsibility to look for problems, whether in ourselves, our team, our department, or in the organization as a whole. For example:

If you don’t have confidence in someone, you must identify what’s creating the lack of trust and figure out what you can do to improve it.

If you aren’t having the right conversations, you must initiate them in order to enhance communication.

If your teammates don’t commit to the changes happening in your organization, you must pull them together to work through the issues and resolve concerns.

If you don’t have clarity in your work, you must create your Playbook to communicate your goals and priorities.

Don’t forget respect. If you want to change the world, you have to change your thinking. With each interaction, you have to step back and ask why this person would want to talk to you. Have you earned his confidence? Do you have something meaningful that would add value to her work and life? Do you adapt your style to be more like his in order to speak his language?

Amy is the Chief Optimizer at Work Ignited and the author of Amazon #1 Best Seller "The Collaboration Breakthrough". For almost twenty years, Amy and her team has provided strategic solutions and simple tools to help business leaders and HR professionals ignite their passion, ignite their teams, and ignite their workplaces. Amy specializes in helping individuals and entire organizations think differently and achieve more by bringing data to life through employee surveys, psychometric assessments, and
360° feedback assessments.